PETITION TO: UNITED NATIONS WORKING GROUP ON ARBITRARY DETENTION Chair-Rapporteur: Mr. José Guevara (Mexico) Vice-Chair on Communications: Ms. Leigh Toomey (Australia) Vice-Chair on Follow-up: Ms. Elina Steinerte (Latvia) Mr. Seong-Phil Hong (Republic of Korea) Mr. Sètondji Roland Adjovi (Benin) HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY In the Matter of Youcef Nadarkhani, Citizen of the Islamic Republic of Iran v. Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran Petition for Relief Pursuant to Human Rights Council Resolutions 1991/42, 1994/32, 1997/50, 2000/36, 2003/31, 2006/102, 6/4, 24/7, 33/30, and 44/22. Submitted by: Maran Turner François Hellot Adam Lhedmat Johann Gandilhon Freedom Now DECHERT LLP 1750 K Street NW 32 rue de Monceau, 7th Floor Paris, France 75008 Washington, DC 20006 +33 1 57 57 80 80 (tel) United States of America +33 1 57 57 80 81 (fax) + 1 (202) 223-3733 (tel) + 1 (202) 223-1006 (fax) Laurence Elkoubi [email protected] DECHERT (Luxembourg) LLP 1, Allée Scheffer, B.P. 709, Luxembourg, Luxemburg L-2017 +352 45 62 62 06 (tel) +352 45 94 65 (fax) April 17, 2020 1 QUESTIONNAIRE TO BE COMPLETED BY PERSONS ALLEGING ARBITRARY ARREST OR DETENTION I. IDENTITY 1. Family Name: Nadarkhani 2. First Name: Youcef 3. Sex: Male 4. Age at the Time of Detention: 391 5. Nationality: Iranian 6. (a) Identity document (if any): Unknown (b) Place of Issue: N/A (c) On (date): N/A (d) No.: N/A 7. Profession and/or activity (if believed to be relevant to the arrest/detention): Youcef Nadarkhani is an Iranian Christian pastor. 8. Address of usual residence: Unknown Rasht, Gilan Province, Iran II. ARREST 1. Date of arrest: May 13, 2016 (initial arrest); July 22, 2018 (arrest after conviction). 2. Place of arrest (as detailed as possible): Most recently, Pastor Nadarkhani was first arrested, along with his wife, on May 13, 2016, at his home in Rasht by Iranian Ministry of Intelligence officials. 3. Did they show a warrant or other decision by a public authority? No.2 4. Authority who issued the warrant or decision: N/A. 5. Relevant legislation applied (if known): No legislation was cited at the time of arrest. 1 Note: Born April 11, 1977. Age calculated from more recent incident that initiated his criminal trial (i.e., arrest on May 13, 2016). 2 Under normal procedures, Pastor Nadarkhani should have received a summons, which, according to reports, he did not receive on July 22, 2018. 2 III. DETENTION 1. Date of detention: Most recently, Pastor Nadarkhani’s first detention began on May 13, 2016. Following Pastor Nadarkhani’s conviction, his second detention began on July 22, 2018. 2. Duration of detention (if not known, probable duration): The first detention lasted from May 13, 2016, to July 24, 2016 (released on the condition that he raise sufficient bail). The second detention has lasted from July 22, 2018, to the date of this communication. 3. Forces holding the detainee under custody: Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 4. Places of detention (indicate any transfer and present place of detention): After his arrest, Pastor Nadarkhani was taken to Branch 2 of the Revolutionary Court of Rasht. On July 24, 2018, he was transferred to Evin Prison in Tehran, Iran. 5. Authorities that ordered the detention: Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Surveillance. 6. Reasons for the detention imputed by the authorities: Pastor Nadarkhani was convicted of “acting against national security” by “promoting Zionist Christianity.” 7. Relevant legislation applied (if known): Unknown. IV. DESCRIBE THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE ARREST AND/OR THE DETENTION AND INDICATE PRECISE REASONS WHY YOU CONSIDER THE ARREST OR DETENTION TO BE ARBITRARY A. Statement of Facts Part 1 of this Statement of Facts details the current political climate in Iran in order to illustrate the Government’s pattern of violating the substantive and procedural rights of dissidents and religious minorities. Part 2 offers background information on Pastor Nadarkhani. Part 3 describes the circumstances surrounding Pastor Nadarkhani’s arrest and continuing detention. 1. Iran’s Pattern of Political Repression and Human Rights Abuses Civil liberties are subject to particularly severe restrictions in Iran. In many respects, the Iranian Constitution purports to protect these freedoms, but caveats enable the Government to circumvent any protections that the Constitution might offer. Although Christianity is a recognized religion under the Iranian Constitution, the Iranian authorities do not recognize converts to Christianity and consider them apostates. As a result, Christian converts are not granted access to officially recognized Christian churches, which forces them, if they want to exercise their faith in fellowship with others, to gather clandestinely and meet in the privacy of their own homes for worship services – in so-called “house churches”. The Special Rapporteur on the situation of 3 human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran3 stated that Iranian intelligence services have continued to closely monitor churches and harass congregations.4 Most Christian converts who have been arrested and detained have been charged with “propaganda against the system”, “propagation of Zionist evangelical Christianity” or “administering and managing the home churches. For example, a public statement issued in February 2018 expressed concern at the prison sentences of between 10 and 15 years imposed upon Pastor Victor Bet Tamraz and two other members of his congregation for allegedly “conducting evangelism” and “illegal house church activities”.5 Christian converts and leaders, especially those who proselytize among those from Muslim backgrounds, are under heavy surveillance by the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS).6 The MOIS is also known to surveil targets’ family members.7 Despite President Rouhani’s promises regarding religious freedom, Iran’s human rights record has seen no substantive change since his election; by some accounts, the country’s record has gotten worse.8 Several churches have closed and their leaders arrested,9 and raids on private homes of Christians and detentions have continued.10 2. Background Information on Youcef Nadarkhani Youcef Nadarkhani is a Christian born and living in Iran. He belongs to the Protestant evangelical Church of Iran and has served as a pastor of a 400-member house church.11 Through much of his life, he has been the target of religious discrimination, for which he has been arrested, tried, and imprisoned on several occasions. He is married to Fatemeh Pasandiedeh, who has also been the target of persecution by the government because of her religion. Together, they have two sons. Human rights advocates have noted that the charges brought against Pastor Nadarkhani and others Christians in Iran are “spurious,” the sentences are “excessive,” and altogether they “amount 3 See, e.g., United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/74/188 (July 18, 2019) (hereinafter “U.N. Special Rapporteur Report 7/18/2019”), https://undocs.org/A/74/188 4 See United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Home Office, “Country policy and information note. Iran: Christians and Christian converts” (May 2019). Available at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/805075/Iran_-_Christians- Converts_-_CPIN_-_v5.0.pdf. 5 OCHR, “Iran must ensure rights of Christian minority and fair trial for the accused– UN experts” (2 February 2018), www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=22629&LangID=E. 6 CHRISTIANS IN PARLIAMENT & FREEDOM DECLARED, CHRISTIANS IN PARLIAMENT APPG AND APPG FOR INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM OF RELIGION OR BELIEF JOINT REPORT ON THE PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS IN IRAN 4 (Mar. 2015), https://appgfreedomofreligionorbelief.org/media/APPGs-report-on-Persecution-of-Christians-in-Iran.pdf (hereinafter “AAPG Report”), at 5. 7 AAPG Report at 5. 8 AAPG Report at 3-4. 9 AAPG Report at 6. 10 AAPG Report at 7. 11 Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, UNITED STATES COMM. ON INT’L RELIGIOUS FREEDOM, RELIGIOUS PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE, https://www.uscirf.gov/https%3A//www.uscirf.gov/youcef-nadarkhani (last visited July 22, 2019) (hereinafter “USCIRF Report”). 4 […] to a criminalisation of Christian practice.”12 Pastor Nadarkhani was first arrested in December 2006, and charged with apostasy and evangelism; he was released two weeks later.13 He was detained once again on October 13, 2009, while attempting to register his church.14 Days prior to his arrest, Pastor Nadarkhani had protested a policy that forced his children to study the Quran in school.15 His position was that the Constitution of Iran permitted parents to raise children in their own faith.16 Though initially arrested for protesting, his charges were later amended to reflect evangelizing of Muslims and apostasy (renouncing his Islamic faith).17 Even though Pastor Nadarkhani claimed that he had never been a Muslim as an adult, Iranian prosecutors used his Islamic ancestry as the reason for the charge of apostasy.18 Pastor Nadarkhani was tried on September 21-22, 2010, by the 1st Court of the Revolutionary Tribunal and, ultimately, found guilty of apostasy.19 Although he maintained that he had not observed a religion prior to turning to Christianity, he was verbally sentenced to death for the crime of apostasy.20 According to various sources, Pastor Nadarkhani was offered leniency if he renounced his religion,21